How a Shared Activity Helps Your Marriage

If you want to feel more connected on a daily basis in your marriage, make shared activities a priority. Here are some tips on how to do that.

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During our first few years of marriage, Ted’s favorite late night companion was a political forum website.

It was an online gathering place for the politically conservative to discuss the latest in politics. You see, prior to our union, this was Ted’s go-to, end-of-the day, wind-down activity, one that he brought with him into our marriage. Most nights, after I went to bed, he’d still be curled up on the couch with his laptop (yep, those were the dark days before iPads) having “spirited conversations” with others.

While there wasn’t anything wrong with this in his pre-Ashleigh days or even in moderation after our wedding, it meant that our heads rarely hit the pillow at the same time. Maybe one or twice a week. Most evenings I’d head to bed, while he logged in a few more hours of screen time.

And, the truth is, it left us feeling a bit disconnected.

Perhaps you can relate. It could be that after that initial newlywed bliss wore off, you and your spouse have discovered that syncing your bedtime routines — or just your routines in general — is a challenge. If so, I’m here to encourage you.

You see, things are now different at our house. Fifteen years into our marriage, it’s rare if we don’t climb under the covers together, at the same time. These days, when we say goodnight, it’s lights out for both of us. (Although, I’ll admit that lately we’ve both been spending a few minutes before drifting off to sleep playing Frozen Free Fall on our iPhones. It’s rather addicting, you see.)

So how did we get from there to here?

How a Shared Activity Helped Our Marriage

The number one thing that’s aided us in this change has been … drum roll, please … a shared activity. We are now intentional to end each day with a mutual experience.

For us, this involves a retreat to the couch together to watch a favorite show. Ted with his Sleepytime tea. Me, with my hot chocolate.

Both of us ready to hear a shared bedtime story. Over the years, we’ve not only taken in tales of 24’s Jack, but of Lost’s John Locke, Monk’s Adrian Monk, Psych’s Shawn and Gus, and The Crown’s Queen Elizabeth II. When each night’s episode or three is over — depending on just how many cliffhangers we’re dealt — we head to bed, together, theorizing what will happen next to our new favorite characters.

And do you know what we’ve found?

Going to bed at the same time is good for our marriage. Even if there are nights when Ted plays Frozen Free Fall in bed a little longer than I do. When we end the day together, we feel more connected.

For us, indulging in a shared activity has been a simple, yet highly effective way to unite us on a consistent basis, to help us take the “his” and “hers” of life and better cultivate an “ours.”

If you want to feel more connected on a daily basis, make shared activities a priority.

How Can You Find Shared Activities in Your Marriage

A shared activity doesn’t mean you have to go to bed at the same time (although, if your schedules allow, I highly recommend it). What it does mean is that you are intentional to carve out time each day to do something with each other. Maybe you have coffee and devotions together in the morning. Perhaps it’s hitting the gym together or talking over dinner.

Make a plan and start putting it into action this week. And, if you find that the shared activity you decide on doesn’t work after all, pick something else and give it another try.

What to Avoid with a Shared Activity in Your Marriage

Make sure that your shared activity actually includes connecting with each other.

While Ted and I watch TV together, this isn’t simply a side-by-side activity. We go on to discuss and dissect what we watch afterwards, of course, but sometimes during. We relate it to our lives and sometimes even current events. We aren’t passive in our viewing or in the time we spend together. For us, it’s an opportunity to be intentional, together.

Do you already have a shared activity? If so, what is it and how does it help you connect?

About Team Us

The best marriages have a teamwork mentality. Spouses serve each other, support each other, and celebrate each other. They tackle life as a unit, and when one slips, the other gives grace. They can be vulnerable together because they know they rise and fall as one.

Do you want a marriage like this? Team Us: The Unifying Power of Grace, Commitment, and Cooperation in Marriage. will help you and your spouse cultivate a teamwork mentality. Ashleigh Slater shares observations from her marriage while offering practical, realistic ideas for unifying yours.

Even if just one of you reads, your marriage can grow in intimacy and joy, providing momentum for the changes you long to see.

Ashleigh Slater is the author of the books, Braving Sorrow Together: The Transformative Power of Faith and Community When Life is Hard and Team Us: The Unifying Power of Grace, Commitment, and Cooperation in Marriage. She loves to combine the power of a good story with practical application to encourage and inspire readers.

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Team Us

"Team Us addresses one of the most important aspects of an intimate marriage: becoming one. With a whimsical and engaging style, Ashleigh Slater challenges us to build our 'team' with careful thought, perseverance, and commitment."

Braving Sorrow Together

"Reading Braving Sorrow Together is like sitting across from the best kind of friend – a friend who has been down the well-worn path of suffering and can listen, empathize and offer gentle guidance for the journey ahead. If you are walking through your own 'weeping years,' Ashleigh’s book will free you to grieve your loss while clinging to the hope that you are never alone in your grief."